Grayscale chief legal officer says spot bitcoin ETF is a matter of when, not if

An incoming spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund is more of a matter of when, and not if, according to Craig Salm, chief legal officer at Grayscale Investments. 

Salm voiced his optimism for such a product on SiriusXM radio on Wednesday, days after the Securities and Exchange Commission said it did not plan to appeal an August court ruling that ordered it to reconsider a bid from Grayscale to convert its flagship GBTC fund into a spot bitcoin ETF.

Salm also said Grayscale has been spending a lot of time in Washington as lawmakers consider two bills to regulate crypto. One bill is focused on writing rules for stablecoins, while the other takes a comprehensive approach to regulating crypto. Both were advanced out of the House Financial Services Committee during the summer and are awaiting a full House vote. Prospects in the Senate though are less certain. 

"The fact that we have two bills making through committee going to the House floor is an amazing amount of progress in D.C. that we have not seen in the crypto space today," Salm said. 

The industry's eagerness

Despite industry optimism that a spot bitcoin ETF is now steps closer, a number of things still need to happen before one hits the market, and a decision to not appeal does not necessarily mean the regulator plans to approve one. 

The market got a jump scare on Monday after rumors swirled that the SEC approved a spot bitcoin ETF, which turned out to be false. Bitcoin surged toward $30,000 on the news, but lingered closer to $28,000 as of Wednesday morning.